Ecuador promotes their destinations at WTM Latin America

Ecuador is participating in WTM Latin America by sharing its most important destinations and activities, and there we had the opportunity to talk with Diego Fernando Andrede Murtinho, Undersecretary of National Promotion.

What does a fair like WTM represent for you?
-It represents coming back, being here physically is giving the country and Brazil the importance they deserve. And for us it is the opportunity to draw the attention of this giant. Today we are working to be able to connect Sao Paulo with Quito or Guayaquil, which are the two main cities. And also, we are looking to have more Brazilians coming to Ecuador and more Ecuadorians knowing and experiencing Brazil.

How important is the Brazilian market for Ecuador?
-Currently the main markets of Ecuador are American, English and European. But we see a huge opportunity in the Brazilian, since we believe that by making more of what we have in our country known, we will achieve positive results very soon.

Who accompanies Ecuador in WTM?
-The ambassador, the consul and the Commercial Office of Ecuador in Sao Paulo are accompanying us. In addition, there are twelve exhibitors from the four regions of the country. We have exhibitors from the Coast, the Sierra, the Amazon and the Galapagos, we are all committed to attracting the attention of the Brazilian market and continuing a very important bridge, which will be that flight, that connection that we have to achieve.

Which region do you think has the most potential today and do you foresee the greatest growth?
-For the Brazilian market, we believe that the mountain and insular regions have a more interesting value proposition with their culture, their people and their very special gastronomy. Remember that Quito was the first city in the world to be declared a World Heritage Site in 1978. And what is wonderful about the Ecuadorian Amazon is that it is very close to the capital, 3 hours by car or very short flights from Quito. I believe that Brazilians and tourists in general have to be ready to be surprised, since you can wake up on the beach, have lunch in the mountains next to a colonial church, and have dinner in the Amazon on the same day with great ease of connectivity.

You came to make their regions and attractions known, but today chocolate is the protagonist…
-We have a wonderful chocolatier chef, Daniel Ampuero, who is accompanying us presenting his art, the origin of cocoa, a raw material that is Ecuadorian. Some 5,600 years ago we already have archaeological remains of the presence of cocoa in the Ecuadorian Amazon, people there already used it. Undoubtedly, the Mexicans and many other cultures perfected its use, but it is up to us to present those ancestral flavors as well.

To those who want to know more about the cocoa culture in Ecuador, which region would you recommend?Cocoa grows at the midpoint between the Coast and the Sierra, at the beginning of the Cordillera where temperatures and the exact amount of rainfall are given. Cocoa as such, the pod, has a flavor that is very different from the final chocolate, but that does not mean that it does not have its charm. Guayaquil and Quito are the main cities where chocolate artisans have extensive experience in how to use it and perfect its flavors. Very delicate flavors, very pure and exact, and on the other hand, Manabí, where the cuisine is rooted in its origins, and that is why they use cocoa a lot.